Hawaiian is the oldest US carrier that has never had a fatal accident or a hull loss throughout its history, and frequently tops the on-time carrier list in the United States, as well as the fewest cancellations, oversales, and baggage handling issues.[10][11][12][13]

On October 1, 1941, the name was changed to Hawaiian Airlines[17] when the company phased out the older Sikorsky S-38 and Sikorsky S-43 flying boats. The first Douglas DC-3s were added to the fleet in August 1941, some examples remaining in operation until final retirement in November 1968.[18]

Modern pressurized equipment was introduced from 1952 in the form of the Convair 340. Further Convair 440s were added in 1959-60, most of the Convairs being converted to turbine propellor power in 1965-67. The last were sold in 1974.[19]

Hawaiian Airlines started to offer jet service in 1966 with the acquisition of Douglas DC-9-10 aircraft, which cut travel times in half on most of its routes.

Hawaiian Airlines began to expand its footprint throughout the 1980s, as the result of intense competition on inter-island routes created by the entrance of Mid Pacific Air into the market. In 1985, the company began its first foray outside the inter-island market through charter services to the South Pacific and then throughout the rest of the Pacific using Douglas DC-8 aircraft. Despite the early successes of this new business, Hawaiian was forced to curtail its charter services when the Federal Government banned all DC-8 and B707 aircraft without hush kits from operating within the US. Hawaiian did, however, manage to gain a short exemption for its South Pacific services.

Soon after, in early 1985, the company received the first two of its leased Lockheed L-1011 aircraft. One aircraft was used to launch Hawaiian's first scheduled operation out of Hawaiʻi, daily Honolulu-Los Angeles services. This new service put Hawaiian in direct competition with the major US air carriers for the first time in its history.[20] Throughout 1985 and 1986, Hawaiian Airlines added additional L-1011s to its fleet and used them to open up services to other West Coast gateway cities such as San Francisco, Seattle, Portland, Las Vegas, and Anchorage, which placed Hawaiian in further competition against the major US airlines.[21]

Meanwhile, Hawaiian Airlines also entered the new international markets of Australia and New Zealand in 1986 with one-stop services through Pago Pago International Airport. Hawaiian also aggressively grew its international charter business and pursued military transport contracts. This led to a large growth in the company's revenues and caused its inter-island service's share of revenues to shrink to just about a third of the company's total.[22]

During the 1980s, Hawaiian also embarked on the development and construction of Kapalua Airport on west side of Maui. Opened in 1987, the airport was designed with a 3,000-foot runway, which constrained its ability to handle large aircraft.[23] As a result, when the airport first opened, Hawaiian Airlines was the only inter-island carrier with aircraft capable of serving the airport. With its de Havilland Canada DHC-7 Dash 7 turboprops, Hawaiian had a distinct competitive advantage in the Maui market.[20][21]

Heading into the 1990s, Hawaiian Airlines faced financial difficulties, racking up millions of dollars in losses throughout the previous three years. Due to the airline's increasingly unprofitable operations, it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in September 1993. During this time, the company reduced many of its costs: reorganizing its debt, wrestling concessions from employees, cutting overcapacity, and streamlining its fleet by disposing many of the planes it had added to its fleet just a few years earlier.[24]

As part of Hawaiian's restructuring, it sold Kapalua Airport to the State of Hawaii in 1993. Hawaiian soon after discontinued service to the airport as it retired its Dash 7 fleet.[24] The retirement of the Dash 7 in 1994 also resulted in the airline operating a more streamlined all-jet fleet as it exited bankruptcy in September 1994.[25]

To replace its retired DC-8s and L-1011s, Hawaiian Airlines leased six DC-10s from American Airlines, who continued to provide maintenance on the aircraft. An agreement with American also included participation in American's SABRE reservation system and participation in American Airlines' AAdvantage frequent flyer program.[25] The DC-10s were subsequently retired between 2002 and 2003.[10] The company replaced these leased DC-10s with 14 leased Boeing 767 aircraft during a fleet modernization program that also replaced its DC-9s with new Boeing 717 aircraft. The Boeing aircraft featured an updated rendition of the company's "Pualani" tail art, which had appeared on its Douglas aircraft since the 1970s.

In March 2003, Hawaiian Airlines filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for the second time in its history. The airline continued its normal operations, and at the time was overdue for $4.5 million worth of payments to the pilots' pension plan. Within the company, it was suggested that the plan be terminated. As of May 2005, Hawaiian Airlines had received court approval of its reorganization plan. The company emerged from bankruptcy protection on June 2, 2005, with reduced operating costs through renegotiated contracts with its union work groups; restructured aircraft leases; and investment from RC Aviation, a unit of San Diego-based Ranch Capital, which bought a majority share in parent company Hawaiian Holdings Inc in 2004.

On May 4, 2006, Hawaiian Airlines expanded service between the US mainland and Hawaiʻi in anticipation of the induction of four additional Boeing 767-300 aircraft, primarily focused on expanding non-stop service to Kahului Airport from San Diego, Seattle, and Portland. Additional flights were also added between Honolulu and the cities of Sacramento, Seattle, and Los Angeles.

On July 24, 2007, Hawaiian Airlines and Air New Zealand signed a $45 million contract for Air New Zealand to perform heavy maintenance on Hawaiian's Boeing 767 aircraft. This contract lasted for five years. Air New Zealand stated that this opportunity will also give a chance for them to build their expertise working on 767s.[29]

In August 2007, the Seattle Seahawks became the second sports team to begin using Hawaiian Airlines to travel to games. The Oakland Raiders, also of the NFL, have been flying Hawaiian Airlines since the 1990s. The two teams fly on Hawaiian's Boeing 767s to and from all their games. Two of Hawaiian's Boeing 767 aircraft have been fitted with decals of logos from the Seahawks and the Raiders.

In late 2009, Hawaiian airlines began to install winglets on their 767-300s to cut fuel costs.

On February 16, 2010, Hawaiian Airlines sought approval from the U.S. Department of Transportation to begin nonstop flights from its hub at Honolulu to Tokyo-Haneda sometime in 2010. The airline was one of 5 US carriers — the others being Delta, Continental, United, and American — seeking approval to serve Haneda as part of the U.S.-Japan OpenSkies agreement.[33] Approval was granted from USDOT to begin nonstop service to Haneda, Japan. The flight began service on November 18, 2010.[34] In addition, the airline is planning to establish a codeshare agreement with All Nippon Airways.[35] On January 12, 2011, Hawaiian Airlines began nonstop service to Seoul-Incheon, South Korea.[36] On July 12, 2011, Hawaiian added Osaka, Japan to its network.[37]

On March 31, 2011, Hawaiian announced that they will be renovating the check-in lobby of the inter-island terminal at the Honolulu International Airport (Hawaiian's main hub). Hawaiian, the only occupant of the inter-island terminal, will be removing the traditional check-in counter, to install six circular check-in islands in the middle of the lobbies. Those check-in islands can be used for inter-island, mainland, and international flights.[38]

On August 30, 2012, Hawaiian filed an application with the U.S. Department of Transportation for a nonstop route between Kona and Tokyo-Haneda.[41] This would fill a void that Japan Airlines left when it ceased service to Kona nearly two years earlier.[41] However, the US Department of Transportation rejected the airline's application to begin service.[42]

On December 3, 2012, the airline unveiled plans to begin flights to Taipei, Taiwan (Republic of China) beginning July 9, 2013 as part of its aggressive expansion plans.[43]

On February 11, 2013, the airline announced a new venture in the turboprop interisland business, "ʻOhana by Hawaiian." Service is operated by Empire Airlines using ATR 42-500 turboprop airplanes. Service began on March 11, 2014, to Molokaʻi and Lānaʻi.[44] The airline expanded more "ʻOhana by Hawaiian" routes between Kahului, Kailua-Kona & Hilo during the summer of 2014.

On April 10, 2013, the airline announced its first destination in China, with service to Beijing expected to start on April 16, 2014, pending government approval. At the same time, the airline announced that it would end service to Manila in the Philippines on July 31, 2013.[45]

On March 12, 2014, Hawaiian announced that it would begin daily service between Kahului and Los Angeles on May 2, adding a second flight from June 30 to September 8 in response to passenger demand. It would also begin nonstop summer service between Los Angeles and both Līhuʻe, Kauaʻi and Kona, Hawaiʻi.[47]

On January 5, 2015, Hawaiian refiled its previously rejected application with the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) for the Kona-Haneda route with service, if approved, to begin in June. The request was prompted by a DOT decision in December 2014 to review the public interest in Delta Air Lines' Seattle-Tokyo route after Delta reduced the frequency of those flights from daily to seasonal.[49] On March 31, DOT again denied the request, opting instead to allow Delta to continue operating the route, with American Airlines taking over if Delta's planned service continued to fail.[50]

On May 1, 2017, the airline revealed a new logo and livery for its aircraft.[51]

On March 6, 2018, the airline announced an order for 10 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners with options for an additional ten; selecting GE GEnx engines.[52]

ʻOhana by Hawaiian is a regional subsidiary carrier of Hawaiian Airlines. The service is operated using three ATR 42 turboprop airplanes owned by Hawaiian and operated under contract by Empire Airlines. The new service was slated to begin in summer 2013 initially flying to Molokaʻi and Lānaʻi, however the airline was unable to begin during that period due to Federal Aviation Administration delays in certifying ʻOhana's operation.[56] ʻOhana by Hawaiian is fully integrated into the Hawaiian Airlines network.[44]

Hawaiian Airlines serves destinations in several Asia-Pacific countries and territories. The airline added its sixth international destination, Incheon International Airport near Seoul, South Korea on January 12, 2011.[36] It also has daily and weekly direct, non-stop international flights from Honolulu to Tahiti, Australia, South Korea, Japan, and New Zealand.

Hawaiian began acquiring Boeing 717 aircraft for operation on the Neighbor Island network in February 2001.[67] On June 4, 2008, the airline announced that it had agreed to lease an additional four 717 airplanes to meet demand due to the shutdown of Aloha Airlines' passenger operations and the closing of ATA Airlines, with deliveries between September and the end of 2008.[68]

Hawaiian Holdings revealed on July 17, 2012, that it had signed a Letter of Intent to acquire turbopropATR 42 aircraft with the aim of establishing a subsidiary carrier to serve routes not currently in Hawaiian's neighbor island system.[69] In December 2012 it was announced that Empire Airlines would operate the aircraft on behalf of Hawaiian.[70] A fourth ATR 42 aircraft was acquired in June 2018.[71]

On November 27, 2007, Hawaiian Airlines signed a MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) with Airbus for 24 long-range jets priced at $4.4 billion. The order included six Airbus A330-200s with a further six purchase rights and six Airbus A350-800s with a further six purchase rights - plans to fly to Paris and London were discussed. Deliveries for the A330s began in 2010 while the first A350 was to be delivered in 2017.[72]

On October 27, 2008, Hawaiian announced that prior to the arrival of its new A330s, it would lease two additional Airbus A330-200 aircraft, beginning in 2011, at the same time extending the leases of two Boeing 767-300ER aircraft to 2011 (to be withdrawn from service coincident with the delivery of the A330s).[73] Two weeks later, the airline announced the lease of an additional A330-200 for delivery in the second quarter of 2010, along with negotiating for delivery of one aircraft from the earlier lease agreement to be moved up to the same quarter.[74] In December 2010, Hawaiian ordered an additional six A330-200 aircraft, bringing the fleet total to 15.[75] Further lease agreements were signed with Air Lease Corporation (one aircraft),[76] and three aircraft each from Hong Kong Aviation Capital,[77] and Jackson Square Aviation[78], bringing the A330-200 fleet to 22. In July 2015, Hawaiian announced the lease of an A330-200 from Air Lease Corporation.[79] The purchase of another A330-200 was announced in December 2016.[63]

In January 2013, Hawaiian signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Airbus for an order of 16 A321neo aircraft plus up to 9 options. The aircraft is operated in a 2-class, 189 seat configuration.[80] Following the completion of labor agreements relating to the operation of the aircraft with the airline's pilot and flight attendant unions, the airline finalized the order in March 2013.[81] In December 2016, Hawaiian announced their intention of leasing two additional A321neo aircraft, bringing their total fleet of the type to 18. The first flight took place on January 17 from Kahului to Oakland.[63]

In February 2018, Hawaiian was rumored to be canceling its order for six A330-800s and replacing them with 787-9s.[82] It was reported that Boeing priced the aircraft at less than $115 million, and possibly less than $100 million, each; the production cost of a 787-9 is between $80 million and $90 million. Boeing Capital also released Hawaiian from three 767-300ER leases in advance; these aircraft were to be transferred to United Airlines. Initially, Hawaiian refuted it cancelled its A330-800 order, but did not dismiss a new deal with Boeing.[83] However, on March 6, 2018, Hawaiian Airlines confirmed the cancellation of the A330-800 order and the signing of a Letter of Intent with Boeing to purchase ten 787-9 aircraft, with options for an additional ten planes;[84] the deal was finalized at the Farnborough Air Show in July 2018.[85]

Hawaiian Airlines started HawaiianMiles, their frequent-flyer program, in 1983. Miles accumulated in the program allow members to redeem tickets, upgrade service class or obtain free or discounted car rentals, hotel stays, merchandise, or other products and services through partners. The most active members, based on the amount and price of travel booked, are designated Pualani Gold (fly 30 Segments or fly 20,000 Flight Miles) and Pualani Platinum (fly 60 Segments or fly 40,000 Flight Miles), with privileges such as separate check-in, Premier Club Lounge access in Honolulu, Hilo, Kona, Kahului, and Līhuʻe, priority upgrade and standby processing, or complimentary upgrades.[90] Travel award redemption from the HawaiianMiles program account for 5% of total revenue passengers.

Hawaiian also has frequent-flyer partnerships with several other airlines, allowing HawaiianMiles members to earn credit for flying partner airlines and/or members of partner airline frequent flyer programs to earn credit for Hawaiian flights. Some partnerships restrict credit to only certain flights, such as inter-island flights or to code-share flights booked through Hawaiian.

Hawaiian provides complimentary and paid beverage service on all of its flights. Meals are not provided on interisland flights due to their short length (30–45 minutes). On its U.S. mainland flights, Hawaiian is one of the only major U.S. airlines to still provide complimentary meals in its main cabin (coach class); each meal is made with no preservatives, all-natural ingredients and packaged with recyclable materials.[94] In 2009, Hawaiian introduced premium meals in its main cabin, giving passengers the option of having the complimentary meal or paying to upgrade to a premium meal. The premium meals consisted of a variety of high end Asian cuisine, but were later discontinued.[94][95]

In March 2007, Hawaiian introduced a "tasting menu" or "tapas menu" for its first class passengers on its U.S. mainland and international flights. The menu consists of twenty entrees set on a rotation, with five available on any given flight. Passengers are provided information on the available entrees for their flight when they board, or shortly after takeoff and may choose up to three entrees as part of their inflight meal.[95][96]

Starting December 1, 2017, guests in the main cabin on Hawaiian flights between Hawaiʻi and Western U.S. gateway cities will be treated to complimentary meal service exclusively created for the airline’s new Pau Hāna Café brand. The Pau Hāna Café, branded meals made exclusively for the airline, consists of a continental breakfast box for brunch and hot sandwich and side for lunch. Pau Hāna, a Hawaiian term for “finished work,” is a time to relax and unwind after a long workday.[97] The meal service will be followed by coffee and a sweet treat for dessert. A parting Mahalo service features the carrier’s popular Kōloa Breeze cocktail, featuring Kōloa Rum from the Island of Kauaʻi, and the airline's signature Pau Hāna snack mix.

On December 20, 2017 air-company has announced its partnership with Mana Up, the Hawaiian-based accelerator for local consumer packaged goods, in order to increase the diversity and volume of locally made products to serve its guests onboard[98][99].

On Airbus A321 aircraft, Hawaiian offers iPad mini tablet computers for rent,[100] in addition to movies shown on overhead projection screens. Prior to September 1, 2013, Hawaiian offered DigEplayer portable video players for rent. Airbus A330 aircraft are equipped with on-demand units built into every seatback. The new Airbus A321neo will be equipped with personal device entertainment via app.

In August 2012, Hawaiian announced an upgrade to its economy-class inflight U.S. mainland service. Among the upgrades were a new menu, a complimentary glass of wine on lunch/dinner flights and a free tropical cocktail before landing on breakfast flights. This was in contrast to other airlines cutting back on meal service.[101] According to Hawaiian's CEO Mark Dunkerley:

"In today's competitive world you cannot justify providing complimentary meals on a traditional business model. It simply does not pay for itself... which explains why essentially everybody has taken all that free food off the airplane. We're being illogical by actually investing heavily in this area... It's part of who we are, and it's what makes us different from everybody else."[101]

In late 2014, Hawaiian Airlines began offering Extra Comfort seating, as a new service class on its Airbus A330-200 aircraft. The Economy Comfort seating offered seating space upgrades for passengers, along with improved soft-product offerings for passengers on international routes.[102]

In October 2015, Hawaiian Airlines announced that they will be upgrading their business class seats from the standard cradle seats to a 180-degree lie-flat seats on their A330 fleet in a 2-2-2 configuration. The new seats will be installed starting the second quarter of 2016. In addition to the new business class seats upgrade, the airline will add 28 additional Extra Comfort seating.[103]

In the new Airbus A321neo that Hawaiian ordered, the cabin used Hawaiian styles and used a 3-3 configuration in regular seating and a 2-2 configuration in first class.